49ers/steelers game, the power goes out not once but twice. the question is, would a blackout be considered home field advantage? it's "way too early" for this. morning. i'm mike barnicle in for willie geist and this is "way too early," the show that regularly forgets to pay the electric bills. i'm glad you're up with us this morning watching on msnbc or listening live on sirius xm radio. shoot us an e-mail or tweet us @williegeist1 and let us know why you're awake right now. or do what frank gore does and text "awake" followed by your response to 622639, and we'll read the best responses later in the show. the next 30 minutes will be your cram session for this tuesday, december 20th. there's a lot going on today, including a failed $39 billion

merger between at&t and t-mobile. we'll have a check on that ahead in business. plus, mitt romney goes on "letterman" to deliver his "top ten things" he'd like to say to the american people. you don't want to miss that. first, let's get to the news live at 5:30 a.m. here at 30 rock in new york city. today, the house is set to reject a two-month extension of the payroll tax cuts, the same legislation that sailed through the senate with bipartisan support. the stop gap measure would also extend unemployment insurance benefits and medicare reimbursements, but house republicans argue it's only a temporary fix. they want to resolve the issue for at least a year. that set off a new round of partisan infighting on capitol hill, with the deadline to pass the bill now just 11 days away. >> do not want to just punt and do a two-month, short-term fix where we have to come back and do this again.

listen, the senate did its -- they did their job, they produced a bill, and the house disagrees with it. >> we outright reject the attempt by the senate to kick the can down for 60 days. it's an unworkable solution demonstrated by the report out today by people who are in the business. >> it's just the radical tea party republicans who are holding up this tax cut for the american people and jeopardizing our economic growth. >> six months ago, house speaker john boehner, republican of ohio, called proposals to extend or expand payroll tax cut "another little short-term gimmick." that language sound familiar to you? he thought a year's extension was a short-term gimmick. he now thinks the 60 days is a short-term gimmick. he's not for this, in my

opinion, based upon this rhetoric. >> this latest standoff is exposing new rifts within the gop. several senate republicans who voted for the bill and happen to be up for re-election are urging their house colleagues to get behind the measure. that includes massachusetts senator scott brown, who said in a statement, "during this time of divided government, both parties need to be reasonable and come to the negotiating table in good faith. we cannot allow rigid partisan ideology and unwillingness to compromise stand in the way of working together for the good of the american people." new polling suggests washington's clashes over the economy may be taking a toll on congressional republicans. a new abc news/"washington post" poll shows 40% of americans trust republicans in congress to handle the economy. 44% trust president obama. on taxes, 46% give more trust in president obama, a five-point

edge over republicans. and when asked who can best protect the middle class, 50% backed the president while only 35% trust republicans in congress. when it comes to payroll tax fights, senate majority leader harry reid says he's not interested in starting new talks with the house. it's a political gamble for both sides with the average americans facing a $1,000 tax hike next year if congress can't make a deal. now, on to 2012 politics. i knew you were waiting for this. fresh off a slew of campaign endorsements, mitt romney is in attack mode, going after his republican rivals and president obama. in one of three tv interviews yesterday, the former massachusetts governor accused the president of lacking leadership. >> it's wonderful to be able to be an author and an editor, but i'm talking about leading an organization, leading a group of people, growing something, hiring people, firing people,

all the process of leadership, and he's never had that experience. he didn't recognize that part of leadership is finding allies and friends across the aisle and building relationships of trust and respect with them, working to find common ground. and whether you do that in the private sector or the voluntary sector, as i did at the olympics, or in the state of massachusetts, where my legislature was 85% democrat, i've had the experience of leadership. this president hasn't. >> is he a socialist? >> you know, i'd prefer to use the term that he's just over his head. i consider him a big government liberal democrat. i think as you look at his policies, you conclude that he thinks europe got it right and we got it wrong. >> and while defending his conservative credentials, romney took a shot at his main republican rival, newt gingrich. >> do you consider yourself a conservative thinker? >> i am conservative. i've become more conservative over time. >> you weren't conservative when you were running massachusetts. you were a moderate, in my opinion. what changed you into a more conservative guy? >> actually, i think my record as governor was a conservative record.

>> but i mean, romney care is not a conservative thing. with all due respect, the thought behind it is the government should get involved with people's health care. that's not a conservative position. >> actually, the idea, as you know, came from conservatives at the heritage foundation, newt gingrich. >> with the iowa caucuses two weeks from today, republican presidential contenders are blanketing the airwaves. just this week, a pro romney super pac is expected to spend $713,000 on television ads in iowa alone, and that's not including the projected $258,000 that the romney campaign is coughing up. gingrich is just starting to hit the air in the hawkeye state, spending just shy of $250,000 this week. and rick perry is betting big on iowa. he's spending over $450,000 on tv ads there. since dropping in recent polls, gingrich is acknowledging that negative ads from his republican rivals are impacting his

campaign. speaking at an iowa town hall last night, gingrich called on his opponents to hold their fire, saying the only person who benefits from republican infighting is president obama. >> it'd be nice if candidates were responsible for the things being done by the people who know them personally who are trying to help them get elected, but my plea to the people across this state for the next 14 days is simple. when you see one of these guys, ask them, how can they keep running this negative stuff? tell them they ought to be ashamed of themselves. they ought to take this junk off the air, and don't hide behind some bologna about this super pac that i actually have no control over that happens to be run by five of my former staff. that's just bologna. >> and new national polling indicates that the republican presidential nomination is still up for grabs. the latest cnn opinion research poll shows mitt romney and newt gingrich tied at the top with 28% each among republican primary voters. ron paul is in third place with

14% support, followed by michele bachmann and rick perry. the poll also shows that only 35% of republicans are definitely supporting their first-choice candidate, with the rest undecided or willing to change their minds. and a new poll out of south carolina shows newt gingrich is still holding on to his lead there, 17 points ahead of mitt romney. and a programming note -- mitt romney will join us live right here on "morning joe" later this morning. north korea will hold a state funeral next week for longtime leader kim jong-il, who died on saturday from a heart attack, and apparently, is still dead. his casket is now on display in the country's capital, surrounded by flowers and military medals. among the mourners was his son, kim jong-un, who's expected to take control of the impoverished, nuclear armed nation. white house's president obama spoke with japan's prime

minister last night to reinforce the united states' commitment to stability in the region. nuclear concerns are also rocking the middle east today with a new warning from the pentagon about iran's ability to build atomic weapons. defense secretary leon panetta says the islamic republic could have a nuclear bomb in less than a year. panetta says the united states and israel share a "common concern" in keeping that from happening. >> if the israelis decide to launch a military strike to prevent that weapon from being built, what sort of complications does that raise for you? >> we share the same common concern. the united states does not want iran to develop a nuclear weapon. that's a red line for us and it's a red line, obviously, for the israelis. if we have to do it, we will do it. >> you just said "if we have to do it, we'll do it." >> that's right. >> what is "it"? >> if they proceed and we get intelligence that they're

proceeding with developing a nuclear weapon, then we will take whatever steps are necessary to stop them. >> including military steps? >> there are no options that are off the table. >> a nuclear weapon for iran is -- >> unacceptable. let's turn now to the business pages. at&t is ending its $39 billion pursuit to purchase t-mobile, a move that would have created the largest cell phone company in the united states. so, let's take a look at the early markets right now as we get all up in your business this morning. cnbc's geoff cutmore is live in london for us. geoff. >> hey, good morning to you. you know what, this deal first broke surface back in march, and it's taken all this time for at&t finally to hang up on the deal. and let's explain the reasons here. the regulator in the communications space, the fcc, said it wasn't in the public interest in the shape of the $39 billion deal was structured, and

they were asking for a lot of disposals. ultimately, at&t didn't feel the deal was worth doing. arguably, this is less bad for at&t than it is for deutsche telekom, who has to decide what to do with the t-mobile business. at&t actually producing better numbers last month for their third quarter. there will be a $4 billion break charge, though, that they will have to book, although there is a question as to whether they may get some of that back in tax. back to you. >> hey, geoff, before you go, as you know, we just reported on this side of the pond the food fight in the united states congress continued as house republicans are set to reject the payroll tax extension. do you think this will have any impact at all on the markets? >> yeah, i think the markets are keeping a weathered eye on this deal. you know, longer term, i think the markets want to see debt reduction and something agreed longer term between the two political parties in that sphere. but right now, the worry is

about growth next year, and if you're going to take $1,000 out of the pockets of 160 million americans for full year 2012, that's a lot of disposal income that won't be spent on growth. so, i think a lot of people are hoping that they can do at least a two-month extension. the deadline, of course, just 11 days away. so, a lot of talking needs to be done to get this deal signed before that deadline expires. back to you. >> geoff cutmore in london. thanks very much. still ahead on "way too early," it's lights out on "monday night football." we'll bring you one of the nfl's strangest moments in quite some time. and mitt romney lets his hair down on "letterman." what the republican candidate really has to say to the american people. that story and a check on weather when "way too early" comes right back.

"operation just cause," the invasion of panama that tonight failed to achieve one of its primary goals, the capture of general manuel noriega. he managed to escape as more than 20,000 u.s. troops fought their way to his headquarters early this morning. my patients,

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this is a nice scene from the top of bill karins' garage. >> that's a nice view! >> yeah, a very bitter, bitter bill karins, who's upset that the patriots are now going to get a bye week in the playoffs. drop your bitterness, my friend, and just report the weather. >> trying to think of anything nice to say and i just can't. it's not coming to the front of my mouth right now. the delay on me right now. good morning, everyone. i want to show you pictures out of the blizzard zone, talking areas out west. we're going to new mexico, we're going to go to amarillo, texas.

many of the interstates were closed. some people picked up 10 to 20 inches of snow in southern colorado. so, this was a full-fledged winter storm for that area. not a lot of big cities were hit by this, but it did interfere with a lot of people's travel, especially yesterday on interstate 70 and down interstate 40. it continues this morning. here's a look at the radar. not really hitting denver. as i said, it's not a lot of big cities. it's mostly interstate 70, rural kansas, around dodge city and garden city. there's a little surprise snow this morning out there. if you look out the window around ft. wayne, many areas of northern ohio, there's snowflakes falling, even just north of pittsburgh, but temperatures are warm enough that it's just going to melt when it hits the pavement. also some thunderstorms in louisiana. so, we have a little travel trouble today, but nothing too bad. new england, you look fine. one dry day, today. the rain will move in during the day tomorrow, so if you want to do your shopping in the dry, nice weather, today's the day to do it, if you can get away from work or school. also, down through the southern half of the country, rain will eventually work into atlanta, but you're looking pretty good as you go throughout tomorrow as

the rain kicks up to the east. and here's a sneak peek at tomorrow's forecast. there's the wet weather up there from boston and new york and also d.c. yesterday i teased you, but the possibility of snow coming christmas eve or christmas day now is looking like probably light rain instead. >> that's typical of you, getting people's expectations up and then crash right down to the ground floor. >> i like to live up to my rep. >> thanks a lot, bill. in sports, two playoff-bound teams squared off in "monday night football" as the 49ers hosted the pittsburgh steelers. but first, they had to get the lights working. a transformer apparently blew up before kickoff, knocking out power in the stadium. 20 minutes later, the game finally under way. first quarter, no score. ben roethlisberger picked off by 49ers cornerback carlos rogers. there you go. takes it back for a considerable gain. boom. that sets up a field goal. roethlisberger playing on a bad ankle threw for two early interceptions. 12 minutes left in the half, power went out again.

that didn't help us here back east watching the game, trying to stay awake. after another delay, the teams were back on the field. fourth quarter, frank gore seals the deal with a five-yard touchdown run. 49ers win 20-3. they set an nfl record as the first team in national football league history to hold an opponent without a rushing touchdown through each of the first 14 games. wow. coming up at the top of the hour on "morning joe," newt gingrich tries to keep his hold on the republican primary field, but does he have the money to compete in the ad wars? and when we come back here, we're going to huddle around the water cooler to watch mitt romney's foray into late-night comedy. it was great. [ morgan ] the super bowl. the most epic day in america.

and the end of a journey that began here... ...when the swipe of a visa card... ...gave one man the chance to bring happiness to ten friends, including the knuckleheads at the car wash. those are super bowl tickets? yes dude! you're going to the super bowl! [ morgan ] use your visa card for a chance to win. to see more of the story, visit our facebook page. just cover your bases. bring her the all-natural sugar in the raw and the all natural, zero calorie sweetener stevia in the raw. then learn that she doesn't drink coffee, just tea. it's only natural.

at the top of the show, we talked about the influence of super pacs on the race in iowa with the ability to raise unlimited amounts of money from corporations and unions or individuals. super pacs can do what the campaigns and normal pacs can't. if you wavent to sound smart today, tell your friends that so far, in the 2012 cycle, super pacs have raised $31 million and

reported $11 million in spending. that's according to opensecrets.org. there are still two weeks left until the iowa caucus. but enough with the real news, let's gather around the water cooler to watch republican presidential candidate mitt romney deliver the top then things he would like to say to the american people on "letterman" last night. >> "top ten things mitt would like to get off his chest." here we go. number ten -- >> isn't it time for a president who looks like a 1970s game show host? what's up, gangstas? it's the mi double tizzle. i have no proof, but i have a feeling canada is planning something. actually, i'm only here to meet tom cruise. my new cologne is now available at macy's. it's mittstified. i just used all my campaign money to buy a zoo with matt damon. i can do a lot, but even i can't

fix the indianapolis colts. >> hey, hey, hey, we won yesterday! what about your patriots? what about those guys? i'd like to see them win something. number two -- >> newt gingrich, really? >> yeah, yeah, that's right. and the number one thing mitt romney would like to say to the american people -- >> it's a hair piece. >> there you go, ladies and gentlemen! >> good job. in the wake of kim jong-il's passing, confusion swept the internet as many misunderstood the defth korean dictator from popular rapper lil' kim. conan o'brien put together an obituary to help clear up any questions. >> conan, i'm sorry, man, but can i take off work today, man? i just found out that lil' kim died, and she's my favorite rapper, and it's just too much for me to handle right now! >> deon, lil' kim didn't die, it

was kim jong-il. >> oh, so north korea lil' kim died, not brooklyn's lil' kim? >> yes, that's right, that's correct. >> oh, man that was my favorite dictator, man! >> for god's sake. let's check out andy's obituary for kim jong-il. >> kim jong-il died yesterday after a long period of living as the supreme leader of one of those chinesy countries. kim buffed sunglasses and pioneered the fashion trend of driving like a bus driver from the 1940s. not much else is known about this mysterious woman who's never gave birth. kim jong-il was largely a recluse, emerging only for the daytime emmys. her hobbies included saluting, sleeping while standing up and fluring in public, but all that ended yesterday, because she died. now, check this out, okay?

it's been getting a lot of buzz on the internet, but i don't understand what the deal is. it's barney frank, massachusetts congressman barney frank, on the floor of the house yesterday not wearing one of kim jong-il's old outfits, but you know, he's trying to accommodate the cast on his left hand. he broke his hand or something, tore a ligament in his thumb. so obviously, he has trouble putting on a shirt and everything like that. i don't understand what the big deal is about his wardrobe. i mean, look at that look, the two of us dress sort of similarly, okay? and by the way, both of us at the end of what we wear every day, we can look into the mirror and say you're going to like the way you look, okay? still ahead on "way too early," why are you awake? your insulting tweets, texts and e-mails are next and "morning joe" is moments away. [ male announcer ] what can you do with plain white rice?

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nyquil tylenol: we are?ylenol. you know we're kinda like twins. no other foam color lasts longer. nyquil (stuffy): yeah, we both relieve coughs, sneezing, aches, fevers. tylenol: and i relieve nasal congestion. nyquil (stuffy): overachiever. anncr vo: tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion... nyquil cold & flu doesn't. at the top of the show, we asked you why are you awake? well, pool boy and ace intern john tower has your answers. johnny? >> good morning, mr. barnacle. >> good morning, jo